“Sometimes You Just Gotta Play Loud!”

Australian guitarist Orianthi – former sidekick to Michael Jackson and Alice Cooper – shares her knowledge on gear, songwriting and keeping your head in the music business

- Jonny Scaramanga

Create the music that you love.

“Before making my new record O, I was working with hip-hop producers, experimenting with beats. Then I met up with producer Marti Frederiksen (Aerosmith, The Struts, Ozzy). I was like, ‘That’s the kind of record I wanna make, something raw and rough’. We did the whole record in 28 days. I was really happy with the way everything sounds really inspired. It makes you wanna hear it live. That’s the whole vibe of the album.”

Make the ultimate guitar by crossbreeding your favorite designs.

“When Gibson approached me about doing a signature acoustic, I was blown away. I wanted to work on a J-200 because it’s such a classic. It’s Elvis and Johnny Cash. I just find the neck a little bit like a boat. It’s hard to get around, so I asked them to put an ES-345 neck on a J-200 body. It is one of the most comfortable, amazing sounding guitars. I worked with LR Baggs on the pickup. Sometimes pickups sound thin with acoustics, but this really has the gravity of the body.”

Play for the song.